Even the smallest amount of exercise produces sweat. Sweat enters your clothing, and whether you can smell it, it always leaves an odor.
Long before an improper footfall might reveal your location, your scent alerts game animals to your presence. You can wash your hunting clothes to remove the stench and leave an inert, odorless fabric, but only if you do it correctly.
Putting your hunting clothes in the washing machine with your other laundry can worsen the situation. This is because scents are added to modern detergents, fabric softener, and dryer sheets.
On the pack, words such as floral blossom, lemon fresh, or others show the detergents contain an aroma. Although you may enjoy the smell, most wild animals will notice this ages before you are in position.
Luckily, you can purchase detergent for hunting clothes, or you can use some easy-to-follow steps if you don’t yet have hunting detergent.
In our guide, you can learn the steps most successful hunters take to keep their hunting attire scent-free. (Read What Group Sets Hunting Regulations In Most States)
Are You Supposed To Wash Hunting Clothes?
Sweat is a natural smell, yet it is a smell that can scare the game when hunting. Wash your hunting clothes frequently to keep body odor from accumulating in the fibers.
Keep your hunting clothes in a sealed plastic bag or container until you arrive at your hunting stand or camp. Wearing hunting clothes while driving, at the gas station, or eating isn’t recommended.
A final thought about scent control is your rubber boots or hunting boots. They hold gasoline, diesel, or any chemical you step in. The scent from your footwear can track to the floor and leave a trail, thus alerting wildlife of your presence.
Washing leather boots isn’t an option, yet you can mask smells with something natural. Deer urine, skunk oil, or mink oil are remedies used, or you can purchase scent-free rubber boots.
How Much Baking Soda Do I Use To Wash My Hunting Clothes?
It’s critical to disguise your scent when hunting. Even after a few times wearing hunting clothes, scents are trapped in the fabric from stubborn stains such as blood. (Read What To Wear Dove Hunting)
Although laundry detergent has a powerful stench, you can eliminate it by washing your clothes with baking soda.
1. Clean Washer
You don’t want leftover detergent scents from previous loads to get on your hunting clothes in your washing machine.
To avoid any leftover detergent or smells from fabric softeners, run a hot water cycle with some commercial cleaning tablets manufactured only for your washing machine.
Leave the machine door open for around 30 minutes to air dry when the cycle is over.
2. How much baking soda to wash hunting clothes?
Add 1/2 cup of baking soda to your laundry load.
Please put all your hunting clothes inside the washing machine and set it to a cold washing cycle. Before starting the load, place your baking soda in the main container with your clothes.
If scents on your clothes persist, increase to 1 cup of baking soda instead.
3. What laundry detergent to avoid for washing your hunting clothes?
Don’t use detergent with perfumes or UV brighteners. Most animals have keen senses of smell and can detect fragranced detergents. UV brighteners brighten clothes so you stand out, as some animals can see ultraviolet light (UV).
Keep it simple with unscented detergent besides baking soda if you have stubborn stains to get rid of.
You can run your clothes through a first washing cycle followed by a second wash cycle.
4. How to dry hunting clothes?
Find a clothesline or a tree branch to air-dry clothing. The clothes will only be exposed to natural odors that aren’t detectable by wild animals. Dry your clothes entirely before storing them.
Handle your freshly washed clothes with gloves to avoid contaminating them.
If you can’t hand clothes outside, you can use your dryer.
Use a regular drying cycle and let the cycle run entirely before checking clothes are dry.
If you want to use dryer sheets, make sure you use scent-free dryer sheets. As they are odor-free, would game shouldn’t smell you.
If you can smell any odor, clean the lint trap and wipe the drum using white vinegar. Leave the dryer open until the vinegar smell has gone. (Find the Best Budget Spotting Scope For Target Shooting)
5. How to store hunting clothes after washing?
Keep in an airtight bag or container. Get a hunting tote bin or large resealable bag. Put your clothes in the container and close it tightly. Keep your hunting clothes in a sealed container until you’re ready to wear them.
Make sure clothes are dry as if they are damp. It can start a chemical process where mold or other strange odors emerge.
6. How to keep smells from hunting clothes?
Dump half a box of baking soda in the container (use an old sock) with your clothes. Next, open a box of baking soda and place it at the bottom of your container. Keep the box of baking soda in the container for 2–3 weeks to help absorb moisture and odors in your clothing.
7. Get Rid of Body Smell
Before getting dressed, take a shower using odor-free shampoo and body wash. You can find these online or at a hunting supply. Then, scrub your entire body to remove any odors that might frighten the wild animals.
To cover the causes of body odor, brush your teeth and use a scent-free deodorant.
8. Dress at The Hunting Sight
Only get dressed at the hunting site to avoid contaminating your clothes, as you can transfer odor by driving on your hunting trip or other external influences.
How Do You Wash Camo Clothes?
Instead of using the family washer’s wash cycle, consider hand washing hunting clothes in a large utility sink or tub. To assist in eradicating odors, add one cup of baking soda to the final rinse water or second washing cycle.
Dry your clothes outside on a clothesline or a drying rack.
If you launder street clothes in the family washer with scented laundry detergent, run a washing cycle with a good detergent, such as scent Killer detergent, before you wash your hunting gear.
Always use a scent-free detergent to wash a load of jeans or bath towels to take with you, and keep them sealed.
Double cold water rinse, and then on a clothes line inside out, air dry or use an outdoor drying rack.
You can do all you can to eliminate odors and keep your human body scent-free, but if your clothes smell like a human, deer still notice you and avoid your location. In addition, the detergent breaks down the surface tension of stubborn stains you can’t remove by other means.
Can You Use Vinegar To Wash Hunting Clothes?
Here’s how to wash hunting clothes using vinegar.
Because vinegar and baking soda are safe to use in both standard and high-efficiency washing machines, they aren’t as good as high-performance laundry detergents at getting clothes clean and smelling good.
Use a good-quality hunter’s detergent to wash your clothes. If possible, dry your clothes outside after washing them.
Put 1/2 cup distilled white vinegar in the detergent chamber of your washing machine to wash brand-new hunting clothes or clean soiled clothes with vinegar.
Base layers and mid-layers should be washed every hunt, but outer layers can be washed less frequently depending on how bloody they get.
Once you’ve dressed and arrived at your hunting location, use a scent-killing spray to eliminate any residual aromas.
Place any hunting clothes in a plastic tote container or a scent-free plastic bag to keep hunting clothes scent-free.
What kind of laundry detergent should you avoid when washing your hunting clothes?
It is not a good idea to wash hunting clothes using laundry detergents with a strong aroma. Several “scent-free” detergent options are available for washing hunting clothes.
In addition, many animals can detect UV light, which brightens clothing, therefore avoid using laundry detergents that include UV brighteners. (Learn How to Turkey Hunt)
Is it true that baking soda eliminates odor?
When it comes down to it, baking soda is a potent deodorizer, and yes, it works to keep refrigerator aromas at bay. Baking soda effectively neutralizes both acids and bases, which is why it is so effective in removing odors.
Is it true that baking soda can destroy your hunting clothing?
If baking soda is left on new hunting clothes, it will leave a white residue; it is preferable to use it in the cold washing cycle.
You can rub a little dishwashing soap on the stain and wash as usual because it works on dirt and oil before your second washing cycle.
What is the role of baking soda in the laundry?
Baking soda, when used with laundry detergent, harnesses the power of pure sodium bicarbonate, a naturally occurring chemical, to:
Neutralize odors by balancing pH levels.
Soften the water in the washer so you can use less detergent or bleach while still getting a good clean when washing your hunting clothes.
